Is There Asbestos In Carpet Underlay

Recent reports on asbestos carpet underlay have indicated that carpet underlay may be contaminated with asbestos.

Is there asbestos in carpet underlay.

The people most at risk from the asbestos fibres in hessian bags are those who worked in the recycling environment. Asbestos is dangerous when disturbed but if it s used in an underlay the carpet should prevent it from being damaged. An exception of asbestos contaminated carpet padding has been reported in australia 3 creating a public stir but a subsequent investigation by jim dodd director of environmental health reported that the possibility of asbestos fibres being in carpet underlay was very low. The source of the asbestos carpet underlay is from recycling of hessian bags used to transport material from wittenoom to perth in the 1960 s and 70 s.

Carpet underlay and wall tiles it was recently discovered that at the height of the asbestos manufacturing period between 1950 to the 1970s hessian bags used to transport imported asbestos as well as raw asbestos from the mine at wittenoom to perth were recycled and used to make carpet underlay. There is no evidence from the one home where asbestos fibres were found in carpet underlay that vacuuming or other activity in the affected rooms has lead to asbestos fibres spreading from underneath the carpet and becoming airborne. It is unlikely for asbestos fibres to be found in carpet underlay. There s no evidence to show that vacuuming a carpet would release asbestos fibres so don t worry if you ve done this in the past.

Sometimes newspaper was used in lieu to save costs. The grey off white or whatever coloured thin sheeting material was type of cardboard or in better installations felt i thought. The point is the company who let this stuff out into the public knowing full well what it did had a similar theory to you. Yes bloss there is alot of hype about asbestos with your theory of it not being to much to worry about let your grandkids roll around on some old carpet underlay which may or maynot contain some asbestos.

Similar stuff was used for continuous lino. Last night abc1 s 7 30 report revealed james hardie knew that for three decades until the early 1970s hessian bags which had been used to transport asbestos were recycled for use as carpet underlay.